John L. Smith - Mississippi State Postgame

STARKVILLE, Miss.  Arkansas' 2012 season is officially entering its final week.

The Razorbacks lost 45-14 to Mississippi State at Davis Wade Stadium on Saturday to ensure they will not be eligible for a bowl game this year. Arkansas will finish the season on Friday against No. 7 LSU in Fayetteville.

Mississippi State (8-3, 4-3 SEC) overcame an early deficit by scoring the game's final 38 points. Arkansas led 14-7 after two offensive possessions, but things turned when Kaelon Kelleybrew fumbled a punt return midway through the second quarter.

Tyler Russell's 6-yard touchdown pass to Chad Bumphis with 4:48 left before halftime gave the Bulldogs the lead for good. Russell set multiple Mississippi State's single-season passing records in the win, throwing for 274 yards and four touchdowns.

The Bulldogs extended their lead on Dak Prescott's 4-yard touchdown run on fourth down with 5:51 left in the third quarter and added another score later in the period when Russell hit LaDarius Perkins for a 24-yard touchdown pass two plays following a Jonathan Williams fumble.

Like much of the season, the Razorbacks were undone by their own mistakes. Arkansas committed seven penalties in the second quarter alone and five turnovers overall, repeatedly aiding Mississippi State with good field position.

Arkansas (4-7, 2-5) began the game well offensively behind the play of quarterback Tyler Wilson. The redshirt senior completed 11 of 12 passes on the Razorbacks' first two offensive possessions for 116 yards and a pair of scores.

His 30-yard touchdown pass to Cobi Hamilton answered a Mississippi State touchdown on the game's opening possession and a 7-yard pass to Dennis Johnson gave Arkansas a 14-7 lead with 12:17 remaining in the second quarter.

Wilson struggled after halftime, though, throwing two interceptions. He finished the game completing 23 of 29 passes for 225 yards.

The loss was the Razorbacks' worst ever to Mississippi State. The Bulldogs' previous four wins over Arkansas were by a combined 21 points.

Lead early, blown out late

The Razorbacks have only trailed after the first quarter in two games (Alabama and South Carolina), but Arkansas has blown leads acquired in the first half against five of the seven teams to which they have lost.

Mississippi State became the fourth team to beat the Razorbacks by three or more scores on Saturday. Arkansas has been outscored by its opponents 175-84 in the second half this season.

Notable

Cobi Hamilton passed Joe Adams for second on Arkansas' career receptions list (165) and is four receptions shy of breaking Jarius Wright's school record. Hamilton, who has set school records for receptions and receiving yards this season, also extended his games with a catch streak to 33, which is the longest active streak in the SEC.

Tyler Russell broke three school records, recording his seventh 200-yard passing game of season. Russell broke Mississippi State's season completions record and the Bulldogs' record for passing yards in a season.

Next Up

Arkansas will play LSU in Fayetteville on Friday, Nov. 23 for the first time since 1992. The Tigers are 9-2 and 5-2 in the SEC following a 41-35 win over Ole Miss on Saturday. Kickoff between the Razorbacks and the Tigers is set for 1:30 p.m. on the day after Thanksgiving and the game will be televised by CBS.

Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 total comments

This Razorback team is the most undisciplined group I have ever seen. Team discipline is determined by the coaching staff, particularly, the head coach. To many "dumb" penalties, lack of protecting the ball, etc. No excuses for this. They appear to "don't care."

Look on the bright side: Only one more game. The biggest question about the LSU game is how long it'll take after the final whistle for Jeff Long to officially fire JLS. Don't expect the new coach to be announced till after the Oklahoma State-Baylor game Dec. 1; I think it'll be Mike Gundy, but it's also Art Briles' last game of the season.

The Razorbacks' fate was sealed when Jeff Long fired our winning coach Bobbie Petrino in April and hired J L Smith. Amazing how far we have fallen without Petrino--from 11 wins including a Cotton Bowl win to this years 4 wins; from no 6 in the nation to the lower regions hitherto unseen for over decade. Long needs to go.

Perhaps I shouldn't answer someone who can't spell "capitalist" (not to mention "Bobby"), but Long had no choice but to fire Petrino. It wasn't just the sex; it was putting the girl on the payroll ahead of other, more qualified candidates. This season was lost in April by Petrino, not Long or even JLS (though JLS certainly didn't help).

Frankly, I don't think the record would be much better even if Bobby Petrino was head coach. This team was grossly over-rated before the season started. Then injuries began piling up, first we lost Small and Walker, then Gragg, then Highsmith and Wright. The 'O' line's run blocking was terrible and didn't improve that much throughout the season. To many mental errors throughout and still making these in bunches. This was just not a good football team to begin with. That was evident in the first game and they reall didn't get better.

John L is lucky the game Friday is a home game. Otherwise he would have to pay his way home. Paul better hope Bobby gets a HC job or he won't be coaching for a while. If I know what play he is going to call , it is certain the other team does. Pitiful.